sexta-feira, 18 de março de 2011

2011 GOODWOOD FESTIVAL OF SPEED

2011 GOODWOOD FESTIVAL OF SPEED –NEWS DIGEST

The annual Goodwood Festival of Speed and Moving Motor Show are set to be held this year from 30 June – 3 July. Below is a summary of just some of the planned 2011 highlights.

2011 FESTIVAL THEME:

‘Racing Revolutions – Quantum leaps that shaped motor sport.’ The essence of this theme will run right through this year’s Festival attractions, with racing innovations evident throughout, including developments to engine, aerodynamics, chassis construction, and much more.

MOVING MOTOR SHOW PREVIEW DAY:

The Goodwood Moving Motor Show is a one-day extension to the hugely successful Festival of Speed. Based at a purpose-built exhibition facility, this annual event held within the grounds of Goodwood Park is a significant addition to the annual Festival of Speed, and will take place on Thursday 30 June 2011. New cars buyers will be able to enjoy an exclusive motor show preview day, where they will not only be able to see the very latest new car models on display, but in some cases also climb aboard and experience the vehicles first-hand, strictly at the invitation of the participating vehicle manufacturers. The cars will undertake hundreds of runs on a special evaluation route that includes the world famous Goodwood hillclimb, following in the wheel tracks of many celebrated racing drivers, including Lewis Hamilton, Jenson Button and Sir Stirling Moss.

MODERN MOTOR SPORT:

Formula One – A record nine of the current 2011 teams are expected to attend Goodwood this year, including the reigning F1 World Championship team Red Bull, along with a number of this season’s top drivers.

WRC – Skoda, which marks 110 years of motor sport involvement this year, will be the new partner for the popular Goodwood Forest Rally Stage, which this year is set to attract most of the current WRC and IRC teams, including American star Ken Block in his new-for-2011 Ford Fiesta WRC, plus the British debut of the new WRC Mini Countryman A host of other rally stars and cars, past and present, will also be seen in action throughout the event, along with a number of enhancements to the rally stage to make the spectator experience even more exciting. The 25th anniversary of the final season of Group B rally weapons will also be acknowledged.

Motorcycles – Many of the works World Superbike teams are expected at the Festival, plus a number of leading riders, including British stars James Toseland, Leon Haslam and Jonathan Rea.

JAGUAR:

This legendary Coventry marque celebrates two important anniversaries at the Festival, with a striking automotive ‘sculpture’ in front of Goodwood House to celebrate 50 years of Britain’s most iconic sportcar, the E-Type, as well as the 60th anniversary since Jaguar first won at the gruelling Le Mans 24 Hours race. Expect to see over 35 important Jaguars at the event, including the dynamic UK public debut of the most powerful production Jaguar ever made, the new XKR-S.

ANNIVERSARIES:

100 Years of the Indianapolis 500:

Goodwood is staging the biggest celebration of Indianapolis outside America. To date over 30 cars have been confirmed, all of which played a significant role at the Brickyard, including nine outright winning chassis, to be driven by drivers with a dozen wins between them. Many of the cars will be appearing at the Festival for the first time. The cars will all be displayed together, creating a mini Gasoline Alley within the F1 Paddock. On track, the unique pageantry of the Indy 500 will be recreated with a Goodwood twist.

100 Years of the Isle of Man TT Mountain Course:

The first 100 years of the Mountain Course on the Isle Of Man TT will be honoured at the Festival with a collection of significant motorcycles and riders that have triumphed on this gruelling event over the last century.

20 Years of Super Touring:

Twenty years after the BTCC ran to 2-litre rules for the first time, spawning the hugely-popular category, Goodwood will gather many of the significant cars and star drivers from the Super Touring era, which dominated saloon car racing worldwide for a decade. So far confirmed are Festival debutant Laurent Aiello, Paul Radisich and Anthony Reid.

Goodwood Action Sports (GAS):

New for 2011 will be a reinvigorated young persons’ area, incorporating the Goodwood Action Sports (GAS) live action sports arena, featuring five different types of extreme two-wheeled sport, all performing on an integrated series of jumps and ramps. GAS will be supported by SEAT, with its own Club SEAT interactive area and young driver experience. The emphasis of GAS will be on world class athletes in various extreme two-wheeled disciplines. As well as watching the experts, there will be an opportunity for Festival visitors to try each sport for themselves in the activities field. The Junior FoS for younger Goodwood visitors will remain as a popular attraction as well